SPRINGFIELD, Ill.
(AP) - Marijuana advocates are trying to lay the groundwork for Illinois to
become the first state in the Midwest and the ninth nationwide to legalize
recreational pot, arguing the move will help solve the state’s notorious
budget crisis.

Two Illinois state
lawmakers introduced legislation last week that would allow residents 21 and
older to possess, grow or buy up to an ounce (28 grams) of marijuana and
license businesses to sell marijuana products subject to regulation. They
say it would help fill Illinois’ multibillion-dollar budget hole with $350
to $700 million in new tax revenue.

A national advocacy
group, the Marijuana Policy Project, based the estimate on the proposal’s
$50-per-ounce wholesale tax, Illinois’ standard sales tax, federal marijuana
consumption data and recreational pot prices in Colorado. The proposal
earmarks 50 percent of wholesale revenues for the state’s general fund and
divides the remaining half 30/20 between education and public health.

Every state to
legalize pot to date has done so by voter ballot initiative, according to
Chris Lindsey, a legislative analyst with the project. But Illinois
advocates are not alone in holding out hope for lawmaker approval. Seventeen
other states - including Missouri - are also considering legislative action.

Rep. Kelly Cassidy,
a Chicago Democrat who co-sponsored 2014 legislation that legalized medical
marijuana in Illinois, is sponsoring the proposal in the House. She said
states that legalized marijuana have seen an economic boost from increased
tax revenue, new jobs and bolstered tourism.

“We’re talking
about all sorts of ways of raising revenue,” Cassidy said, referring to
state lawmakers’ efforts to break a two-year budget logjam. “We might as
well be talking about this, too.”

But she and fellow
Chicago Democrat Sen. Heather Steans, who sponsored legislation that
succeeded in decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of pot last
year, know their new pitch could be a tough sell. They plan to jumpstart
conversations with lawmakers, interest groups and the public this spring but
won’t move legislation forward in the current session.

Key players like
the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police currently oppose the measure.
Ed Wojcicki, the association’s director, called legalizing recreational pot
“an enforcement nightmare.” He said existing science remains inconclusive
about how to best identify impairment on the road and in other compromising
situations.

Democratic Rep. Lou
Lang of Skokie, lead sponsor of the medical marijuana proposal, suggested
the staggered timeline could help lawmakers gain a more complete picture of
potential benefits and consequences - especially as more data rolls in on
Illinois’ pilot medical marijuana program, which launched in late 2015.

“I do think this
might be in Illinois’ future,” Lang said. “I certainly support the idea of
having a discussion.”

Illinois
legalization advocates like Dan Linn, who directs the state chapter of a
nonprofit lobbying group called NORML, have long been working toward this
conversation. Linn said states where pot is legal have recorded no uptick in
traffic fatalities. Instead of threatening public safety, he contended,
regulating the already widely consumed substance will take the business out
of the hands of criminals and impose important regulations like quality and
age controls.

“There’s not a drug
dealer in this country that asks for an ID when someone’s looking to buy
drugs,” he said.

The proposal is
launching at a time when the federal government, which still lists marijuana
as an illegal drug, is considering ramping up enforcement against
recreational use. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said last month his
department is reviewing an Obama administration memo that gave states
flexibility in passing marijuana laws.